child care

House lawmakers pressed the Pentagon’s service personnel chiefs last Thursday on why military families are waiting as much as six months and longer for on-base child care, Military Times reported. During a Military Personnel subcommittee hearing, Vice Adm. Robert Burke, the Navy’s personnel chief, said about 8,000 personnel were on wait lists and “about 2,000

Civilian personnel of the Army without access to on-base child care will continue to get subsidies. The Army had announced the payments would stop on March 1, as On Base reported. The service announced in a Feb. 28 letter that the payments will continue. The program provides up to $1,500 a month for each child

Civilian Army employees without access to on-base child care will no longer get a $1,500 monthly credit when a new policy kicks in March 1. Government Executive reported on the change, which Army leaders told recipients in a January letter will help “prioritize resources to soldiers and their families.” U.S. Army photo by James

New legislation aimed at addressing military spouse unemployment would provide businesses a federal tax credit for hiring military spouses as well as make child care more affordable for military families. The bill would extend the applicability of the Work Opportunity Tax Credit, which offers employers a credit of up to $9,600 for hiring certain categories

Several recommendations from the congressionally established commission reviewing military compensation are expected to support military families, according to sources familiar with the final report. The Military Compensation and Retirement Modernization Commission will recommend DOD build more child development centers on installations, a response to military families’ long-standing complaints about the lack of sufficient child care, reported Military Times. The commission reportedly will call for preserving existing commissary benefits, including selling items at cost plus a 5 percent surcharge …

Children in military families under the age of six are particularly vulnerable to the impact of deployments and other challenges related to military service, according to a new report by Child Trends. Parents and caregivers should be taught to better manage child behavior as the strain on military families after more than a decade of war is felt by young children just as it is by older children and non-deployed adults, according to the report. Young children are at risk because of their emotional dependence on adults and their developing brains’ susceptibility to high levels of stress …